James Reed: My advice for Andy Burnham on his big promotion
James Reed, whose worked in recruitment for over three decades, shares his three tips for Andy Burnham on starting his big new job
Having worked in recruitment for over 30 years, I am often asked for my advice on starting a big new job.
They don’t come much bigger – or more scrutinised – than that of Prime Minister.
As Andy Burnham finds his feet in Number Ten, I wanted to share my top three lessons for those who have just won a significant promotion.
First, do what I call ‘studying the fish’. This might sound like strange advice, but in my experience, the longer you look at a fish, the more you’ll see – its colours, scales and other features. You don’t want to rush into decisions when you have just got a big new job. Work out the lie of the land first.
In this respect, Andy Burnham has a big advantage in that Parliament is currently in recess. He isn’t having to rush into his first Prime Minister’s Questions and there isn’t yet pressure on him to come up with a full legislative programme. Instead, he can go around the country, meet and listen to lots of people, and really study the fish. At least for now, he can avoid the knee-jerk overreaction that has long characterised much of public life.
My second piece of advice is don’t do what you can do, do what only you can do. Being Prime Minister is a uniquely powerful and impactful role. There are many things Andy Burnham could do, but he needs to identify things distinctive to him and his agenda. His decision to open Number 10 North in Manchester is a good example of this, and paves the way for a broader devolution agenda that could be genuinely transformative.
Third, recognise that the first three months in a big new job are the hardest. You need to use them to assemble the right team, learn your way around and establish the short cuts that will be effective.
Early signs are good. Indeed, I’d give Mr Burnham ten out of ten against my criteria in his first ten days. Michael Gove described it as “new boyfriend energy”, and there is that sense of a breath of fresh air. The new PM has been out and about, sounded relentlessly positive and indicated a new direction. The rates cut for pubs, for example, has shown some interest in businesses that are struggling and are an important part of our communities.
So, If I had hired Mr Burnham as a CEO, I’d be telling my board he has made a good start. Time will tell whether he can keep it up.
Stop the speculation
Recent Budgets have been characterised by a damaging spiral of speculation about tax rises in the run up. An army of think tanks and tax specialists, aided by parts of the media, seems to delight in trying to frighten everyone to death with talk of new taxes. This has become really bad for our economy, and means that anyone thinking of investing concludes they shouldn’t in case they get clobbered. The new Chancellor John Healey should make a clear and categoric announcement that any reports of tax measures coming in the autumn don’t originate from him, his advisers or anyone genuinely in the know. Who knows, maybe he could also keep back a positive tax surprise for business rather than a flurry of negative ones.
France on fire
My wife Nicola and I have just come back from Bordeaux, where we drove through beautiful wooded countryside which has now been burned to a cinder. Brave firefighters have lost their lives and large-scale evacuations have been ordered, with another heatwave forecast. You have to wonder about the future of southern Europe as a tourist destination. Will people continue to go when its 40 degrees and on fire a lot of the time? Climate change is suddenly feeling very real.
What I’m reading
I am loving the book Land by Maggie O’Farrell, and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a summer read. The story starts on a remote peninsula of an island shaped like a dog. This is Ireland 1865, and the narrative traces its history through the lives of a family that lived there. It takes in a grand sweep from Celtic pre-history through to latter-day British colonialism. I can already visualise it as a stunning film.
Don’t believe Trainspotting the Musical sceptics!
I saw Trainspotting the Musical at the Theatre Royal Haymarket and found it hard to reconcile the mean reviews from the critics with the raucous standing ovation the cast received at the end of the show. Indeed, I spotted one critic with his notebook who told someone near me it was the worst thing he had ever seen at the interval joining in with the cheering later. My theory is that characters like Renton, Sick Boy, Begbie and Spud have become such iconic parts of our collective cultural language that the audience loves to watch them on stage. Ignore the critics and go and see it.
James Reed is chairman and CEO of Reed